Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Acquires Shares of 52,575 WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC)

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake of 52,575 shares of WesBanco, Inc., valued at approximately $1,628,000, during the first quarter.
• The recent earnings report showed WesBanco's EPS at $0.91, exceeding the consensus estimate by $0.04, and the company is expected to post 3.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
• WesBanco declared a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share with an annualized yield of 5.0%, with a current payout ratio of 89.16%.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 52,575 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,628,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned about 0.08% of WesBanco as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of WesBanco by 11.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,710,539 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $218,361,000 after purchasing an additional 705,483 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC grew its position in shares of WesBanco by 27.1% in the fourth quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,777,002 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $57,824,000 after purchasing an additional 379,386 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in shares of WesBanco by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,537,252 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $50,022,000 after purchasing an additional 116,796 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of WesBanco by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,502,057 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $48,888,000 after purchasing an additional 82,987 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC grew its position in shares of WesBanco by 14.2% in the first quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 891,580 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $27,603,000 after purchasing an additional 111,136 shares during the last quarter. 61.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WesBanco Stock Performance

WesBanco stock traded up $0.14 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $29.65. 96,916 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 608,837. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $31.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $31.86. The firm has a market cap of $2.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.86 and a beta of 0.87. WesBanco, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $26.42 and a fifty-two week high of $37.36.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.04. WesBanco had a net margin of 11.65% and a return on equity of 7.72%. The firm had revenue of $260.73 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $261.14 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.49 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that WesBanco, Inc. will post 3.24 earnings per share for the current year.

WesBanco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th were issued a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. WesBanco's payout ratio is presently 89.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on WSBC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of WesBanco from $43.00 to $40.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on shares of WesBanco from $36.00 to $34.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, WesBanco presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $38.83.

WesBanco Company Profile

WesBanco, Inc operates as the bank holding company for WesBanco Bank, Inc that provides retail banking, corporate banking, personal and corporate trust, brokerage, mortgage banking, and insurance services to individuals and businesses in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Community Banking, and Trust and Investment Services.